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The burden of food safety

Regulations sound good, but not if they're unfunded

Posted:
01/18/2013 01:00:00 AM MST

The hits just kept on coming while the bureaucrats dallied with revamping food safety regulations. Spinach, cantaloupe, peppers, peanut butter, eggs and more sent thousands of Americans running to their doctors -- or their toilets -- suffering from food-related illnesses such as salmonella and listeria.

Every year, there are an estimated 3,000 deaths from contaminated food. One in six Americans becomes ill from eating contaminated food each year, and an estimated 128,000 are hospitalized. And the reported outbreaks weren't just information overload hype: The 2010 egg recall was the largest in U.S. history. In fact, the 10 largest food recalls in the country's history all happened between 2006 and 2011 (one was for contaminated pet food.)

The Journal of Food Protection says the cost of food poisoning alone is about $14 billion.

The 2011 Food Safety Modernization Act was badly needed; rules to implement it were finally announced this month. One of the major changes will be food plant inspections at least once every three years, as opposed to the previous once every 10 years. And food companies here and abroad that sell food in America need to submit formal plans for food safety, and face sanctions if those aren't followed.

So far, the food industry -- manufacturers and farmers -- have supported the changes. The costs they incur by voluntarily following the rules will be passed on to consumers -- but will be just a tiny fraction compared with what really impacts the cost of food production and transportation, including droughts and gasoline prices.

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The critical question is whether the Food and Drug Administration will be adequately funded. The agency should one that regulates the industry for safety, not one that merely reacts after an outbreak of illnesses is reported by public health agencies. Once 30 people die from eating contaminated cantaloupes -- as they did in 2011 -- it is too late.

New construction has to be inspected for safety, and we accept the burden of paying slightly more for our houses (for instance) in exchange for not having them fall down around our ears. And, in the long run, such safety precautions not only save us from injury or worse, but will save money from having to fix or rebuild in the long run.

Food safety costs money. Not a lot of money, compared with the overall costs at the checkout stand -- and very, very little compared with the costs of recalls, discarded dangerous food, illness and even death. Revamping food safety regulations is the right thing to do; paying for it is a no-brainer.

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